Prescott Kelly

Journal entries imported from the previous iteration of wisrd.org

PRESCOTT KELLY

March 14th, 2022

Happy Pi Day! This week the RECON team members will be focusing on painting the wooden box that the telescope is contained in. All of the black mold has been terminated. We are going to have the resources for the painting job ready by tomorrow, hopefully it will prevent any further black mold from developing on the wood.

March 8th, 2022

During this week, the RECON team members performed maintenance on the telescope. Last week, the wooden crate that we use to store the telescope was started to reveal the development of black mold. I was assigned the task of both applying and coating the box with bleach to exterminate the black mold. All safety protocols and procedures were followed when handling the substances as both goggles and gloves were supplied. Furthermore, I am continuing to do research and writing for my internship white paper.

February 18th, 2022

This week the RECON team members attended an occultation event focused on TNO passing in front of star 11WJ157. Unfortunately, the camera wouldn’t perform on the night of the event, so we could not collect the data. As of today, the camera is fixed, and we are excited for our next event in the near future! In other news, I am continuing my work on the white paper for the WISRD internship.

February 14th, 2022

Happy Valentines Day! Last week, the RECON team members were focused on an occultation event that took place on Wednesday, February 9th. Unlike when we tested the usage of the telescope, the moisture buildup was not an issue this time. Tonight we have an event that is starting at around 9:30 pm, I am very excited and hopefully all members will be able to attend. This week I will also be continuing my white paper for my internship.

February 7th, 2022

This week the RECON team members are focused on the two upcoming events that are coming up in these next 2 weeks. We tried to make a valiant effort in making sure that the software works for the events. Along with this, we tried to secure the telescope by using a bag around it, so that there is a lower chance that moisture will get inside.

January 31st, 2022

This week, the RECON team members are focusing on testing out the ASCOM software. The best time to test this would be later in the day, so this week we are scheduling it on Wednesday which serves as an appropriate time for everyone in the team. Along with this, RECON has two events coming up in the next two weeks, which is very exciting!

January 18th, 2022

This week, the RECON team members are continuing their efforts and resources towards the WISRD pitches. For my pitch, the main subject that will be focused on is light pollution. I will be discussing how it primarily impacts our work during the RECON events that we attend as well as the consequences if this pollution continues to develop.

January 12th, 2022

This week, the RECON team members continued to work on our presentation focused on the James Webb Space Telescope. We tried to prioritize on providing videos and other forms of sources. However, the presentation has been cancelled. Nevertheless, our team shifted gears and directed our attention to working on our WISRD pitches. We are in the process of gathering resources and applying them into our writing.

December 15th, 2021

During this week, maintenance had to be done on the telescope due to the rain. Where it is currently located outside, it is critical that it is securely covered up. The rain could have possibly caused damages to the telescope, so the RECON team made it a priority to cover it and make it secure. Furthermore, it’s important that we do this because Winter break is coming up very soon, so we had to make sure that it would last for the duration that we’re not on campus.

December 7th, 2021

Last week, we attended an occultation on Wednesday at 11:00 pm. All of the RECON members were present, and we attempted to ulitilize the software ASCOM. However the occultation was a failure due to poor fog, humidity, and general weather.

November 29th, 2021

This week WISRD members have been continuing their interviews with Joe Wise. Along with this the RECON team has an event planned for December 1st in the night. The occultations will be taking place on Wednesday at 11:00 pm.

November 16th, 2021

This week WISRD members have been working on their student evaluations. There are scheduled meetings with Joe Wise. In addition, the RECON telescope has been moved to a more permanent residence within the school. In collaboration with the RECON team members we have ensured that it is secured. It is safe with being both locked and covered so no damage could be caused due to any kind of weather.

November 9th, 2021

Last week my fellow RECON Members and I worked on our posters. We created two posters, one that focused on RECON, the Las Vegas trip, along with other general RECON information. The other poster solely talked about the data analysis process, and some of the more in-depth details. On Monday (11/9), our group along with the rest of WISRD presented their labs that we have been working on. We were able to talk to parents and other visitors about our institute. Later that day we attended a presentation led by Olivier Guyon talking about finding exo-planets and searching for life with telescopes.

October 25th, 2021

Last week my fellow RECON Members and I went to Las Vegas to view an occultation. We attended conferences where we were able to reconnect with old members and meet some new faces. The first two mornings were spent practicing the setup surrounding the telescope and getting ourselves ready to gather data on the event night. However, we were unfortunately unable gather any data due to an incident with our tools. But, I am very grateful for the opportunity to be on this school trip and I believe I was able to take away a lot from this experience.

October 6th, 2021

The James Webb Telescope Slideshow Video is now completed. In addition, the RECON team has attended two meetings, and we are going to be attending an event in Las Vegas, Nevada in around a week.

September 22nd, 2021

I am currently finishing up and putting the final touches on the James Webb Project Video. The video should be completed and exported by this Friday. We’re planning on having another event for the RECON team soon in October.

September 8th, 2021

I have been editing a video for the James Webb Project and I am aiming to get it done soon. On September 4th the RECON team had our first event of the new school year. I’ve also been working on an up-to-date/advanced version of the Wind Tunnel with Ian Norfolk, Luis Perez, and Reid Allenstein.